Every family had blind spots that escaped the eyes of outsiders. Many people envied Michael's family and his house. After all, moving into a Middle Class community at such a young age was no easy feat.
But who could have imagined that the house was not necessarily as perfectly maintained as Lin Qi imagined?
Some old appliances had still not been replaced. Some wallpaper had begun to show a faint, rotten yellow. Some decorative plasterboard had started to crack. Some floorboards, worn down by age and eaten by insects, were no longer as stable as they once had been.
Every family had similar problems. Some were merely matters of decoration and furnishings, while others concerned family relationships.
Fortunately, Michael's occupation and employer meant his family would not face too many problems in that regard. The management of a critical department could ensure that his family had more than enough food, clothing, and even some money left over.
Once financial freedom was achieved, family members usually would not have unpleasant relationships with one another. Whether affection or passion, both were essentially forms of restlessness built upon a material foundation that some people considered unnecessary.
When Newspaper Boss's foot came down on a floorboard that Michael's Wife had already mentioned twice without replacing, the sharp sound of twisting, rubbing wood rang out through the empty house.
In the middle of the night, if human movement came from the Living Room, it was enough to make many people's sensitive nerves snap taut in the darkness.
Michael's Wife turned on the light and walked to the door, pressing her ear against the panel to listen to the sounds outside.
She was the only person in the house tonight. The maid was not a live-in full-time servant. Their home was not a villa or an estate, but merely an ordinary detached house in a Middle Class community.
They had no spare bedroom or bathroom for a maid to use. Besides, their child attended a full-time private school and had not returned, so she was the only person in the house.
The woman in her thirties listened carefully for a while. There did not seem to be any further noises from the Living Room downstairs. The sound she had suddenly heard seemed almost like an illusion, lacking any real certainty.
Facing the door, she hesitated. Should she go out and take a look? Michael was usually at home, and she had never realized that a large house could make her feel such terrifying dread. It was only the distance of a door, yet it had become the boundary between light and darkness.
Opening the door and facing the darkness was not something everyone had the courage to do.
Meanwhile, Newspaper Boss clutched a gun and slowly made his way upstairs, stepping lightly on the stairs. His fierce, faintly crazed gaze fixed on the light beneath a door at the end of the second-floor hallway.
The light seemed to be trying to break free through the narrow gap, illuminate the entire room, and drive away the darkness. But it was too weak—so weak that it could illuminate less than an inch of floor outside the gap.
He was barefoot. Maintaining his gentle pace, he slowly reached the master bedroom door. He knew the floorboard he had stepped on might have alerted the people inside. He was waiting for the other party to open the door of their own accord.
After a dozen seconds, Michael's Wife cautiously opened the door. An ugly face filled her entire field of vision. Her instinctive scream, born of fear, had barely begun before a punch struck it back down!
Outside the house, Lin Qi saw two shadows flash rapidly past the window through the curtains, which did not fully block out the light. The sudden scream abruptly ceased. It had not even startled the neighbors.
Lin Qi put away the tools in his hands, silently climbed down the utility pole, glanced twice at the lit window, then turned and ran toward the front gate.
If Newspaper Boss had not come looking for him and had been willing to swallow this loss, then Newspaper Boss and his story would have disappeared from the entire affair.
But he had refused to swallow the loss and had come to his door. That meant Newspaper Boss was an unstable factor who might become a huge problem, especially since his greed could turn into a dagger aimed at Lin Qi from the shadows.
Once Michael trusted him and believed that Lin Qi had kept his money, the two of them might join forces. That was not a situation Lin Qi liked.
When enemies could join hands, it meant he would face even more unexpected trouble. That was why he had given Newspaper Boss a suggestion.
He had to give Michael a lesson painful enough to reach his heart, but he also had to take the opportunity to deal with Newspaper Boss. Otherwise, if Newspaper Boss made wild accusations at the Police Station, he might very well shift the blame for everything he had said onto Lin Qi.
That was also the situation Lin Qi feared most. He could not yet be considered a notable figure in the Bayer Federation. He was not even well known in this small city, Sabine City.
If the head of a regional Revenue Service Investigation Team truly shamelessly framed someone, it might well become reality. With Newspaper Boss playing along by deliberately tarnishing himself to assist Michael, Lin Qi really might be caught by them.
After absorbing a great deal of knowledge in that small place, he had reached one conclusion: he should do his best not to let his potential enemies form an alliance. The more people there were, the bolder they became, and eventually they would turn "possible" into "real."
Whether they succeeded or failed, it was merely an attempt for them. But for him, it could be a devastating blow. The best solution was to "deal with" them before they formed an alliance, ensuring they had no chance to become a unified whole.
Lin Qi ran toward the guard booth and soon found the security guard on duty. After he explained what he had discovered, the guard immediately took it seriously.
Earlier, after Michael had discovered Lin Qi here, he had specifically asked the community service company to look after his house more carefully. He had also explained his concern that, once he left on a business trip, only his wife would remain at home.
The service company had assured Michael that they would do everything they could to fulfill his request. After all, he was the head of the local Revenue Service Investigation Team and still held some authority.
The service company had passed the matter on to the security guards. Upon hearing this, the guard dared not delay. He not only summoned more people over the radio, but the guards stationed at the booth immediately ran toward Michael's house as well.
The other group of patrolling guards had not arrived yet. Gritting his teeth, he charged through the doorway while loudly asking about the situation inside.
Sometimes, shouting a warning was not meant to tell the criminals that those coming to arrest them had arrived. It was a way to halt the crime as much as possible. Whether the Police Station or the Bureau of Investigation, they were not that stupid!
Suddenly, the curtains on the second floor were pulled aside. Newspaper Boss stared in terror at the security guard climbing into the yard. He glanced back at Michael's Wife, whom he had beaten until she had lost the will to resist, tightened his grip on the gun, and decided to flee immediately.
He had not come here to die. He had only come for revenge. Although he had not completed his original plan, he had more or less gotten his revenge. There was no need to leave himself here.
He fastened the belt he had just loosened, rushed out of the room, and vaulted down from the second floor. Before he could escape, the room's door was slammed open.
Their eyes met. The standoff, along with the whistles sounding in the distance, immediately brought Newspaper Boss back to his senses. He instinctively pulled the gun from his pocket and ran toward the door, shouting, "Don't force me! Get away from the door!"
Faced with the threat of a handgun, most people would not believe their flesh and blood could withstand a bullet. The security guard's scalp went numb as he raised both hands high...
Seeing this, Newspaper Boss wore a twisted smile. Once again, he realized the power of the little darling in his hand.
As he watched Newspaper Boss leave, the security guard rushed upstairs to find Michael's Wife while using the radio to inform the other guards of what had happened.
Less than thirty seconds later, police sirens rang out beyond the community. Places where the Middle Class gathered always had plenty of police patrol cars. Outside communities where the Upper Class gathered, there were even two or three police cars stationed year-round.
As for the poorer Lower Districts or the Slums, of course, the authorities would never acknowledge that such a concept existed. In those areas, let alone police cars—even foot patrols were nowhere to be found.
Society was simply this direct: the more value you had, the treatment society gave you would match your own value!